Nutrients You Need to Stay Healthy.

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In order to maintain the proper functioning of your body and decrease the risk of serious diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and heart disease, you must pay attention to your diet and get the daily recommended dose of essential nutrients. Here are the nutrients you need to stay healthy and the main sources where you can find them.

Stressful deadlines, hectic schedules, an unbalanced diet, and a chaotic lifestyle
represent main causes that can strongly influence people's health
and cause chronic diseases. The lack of vitamins and minerals stops
the body from functioning properly. Therefore, it is important to
know what are the foods that deliver the necessary amounts of
nutrients you need to stay healthy. Since food alone cannot always
provide all the daily recommended intake, dietary supplements are
sometimes needed. Eat smart, invest in nourishing sources and
you'll notice the difference!

Iron

Iron plays an essential role as it helps carrying oxygen to
blood cells throughout the human body. Iron deficiency leads to
severe fatigue, weakness and anemia. Main sources of iron are both
vegetable and animal foods. Still, experts say that vegetable iron
is not so well absorbed, while the one coming from animal sources,
such as poultry or beef, is directly absorbed. You can also find
iron in dry fruits, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, legumes,
lentils, sprouts, and broccoli. The recommended amount of iron is
of 18 mg daily.

Fiber

Dietary fiber, found in vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts,
seeds, and whole grains, helps you keep a healthy digestive system,
preventing constipation, and decreases the risk of certain
diseases, protecting against heart disease, diabetes, and even
cancer. Moreover, fiber plays a major part in your weight loss plan as it has almost no
calories and controls appetite. The daily recommended dose of fiber
is 25 grams.

Magnesium

You need 320 mg of magnesium a day. Why? Because magnesium is a
vital mineral that has multiple helpful benefits for your health.
First of all, it transmits nerve impulses, supports muscle
function, and provides energy. The right amount of magnesium also
prevents osteoporosis, hypertension, heart diseases, insomnia,
constipation, and depression. You can acquire magnesium from nuts,
seeds, whole grains, green leafy veggies, wheat germ, and fish.

Potassium

Heart palpitations, fatigue, muscle weakness, anemia, and high
blood pressure are some of the symptoms that might indicate a
potassium deficiency. The recommended intake of potassium is 3,500
mg daily. Potassium helps you maintain a normal blood pressure,
reduces the risk of stroke, anxiety, heart disease, kidney
disorders, and keeps brain and nerves in good condition. Main
sources of potassium are citrus fruits, bananas, vegetables,
potatoes, white beans, and nuts.

Vitamin C also known as ascorbic acid is a powerful antioxidant
that has numerous benefits such as improving the immune system and
therefore controlling infections, both viral and bacterial, keeping
healthy bones, blood vessels, teeth and gums. It can be found in
citrus fruits, kiwi, berries, tomatoes, green and red peppers,
potatoes, spinach, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli. You need 75 mg
of vitamin C daily.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is an antioxidant that maintains heart function,
reducing the risk of strokes, boosts immunity, and even protects
against some forms of cancer and Alzheimer's disease. You can get
the 15 mg daily recommended amount of vitamin E from nuts, seeds,
whole grains, vegetable oils, almonds, peanut butter, avocados,
spinach, and other green leafy vegetables.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A or retinol is very important for a healthy body as it
boosts immunity creating resistance to infection and keeps eyes and
skin moist. Besides, it helps maintain a good vision and sustains
red blood cell production, strengthens bones and teeth, prevents
dryness of the skin, and lowers cholesterol. Moreover, since
vitamin A is an antioxidant, it also contributes to the prevention
of certain types of cancer. The daily recommended intake of
potassium is 3,000 international units (IU) for men and 2,310 IU
for women. Food sources of retinol are animal products (liver,
kidney, eggs, oily fish, dairy), but also green and orange
vegetables, carrots, watercress, oranges, and other fruits.